burning dreams
by lana123
Summary: tess loves america aleady, though she has only just got there. but when a new family move to town, they are secretive and dont talk to anyone--- this is before twilight...
1. perface

Preface

"Where are you?" I shouted into the now empty forest. "Anyone?" I was turning round and round in circles, searching the now steadily growing dark forest. I was sure they were there a minute ago. I closed my eyes, this was too much to handle. Everyone had left me, EVERYONE_. "_Please?" I whispered. Then I dropped my head to my hands and cried till I could cry no more.


	2. introductions

1. Introductions

_Ring, ring _The phone rang shrill down stairs.

_Ring, ring_ I clomped down the stairs as fast as I could, running when I got to the bottom.

"Hello?" I asked, a little breathlessly.

"Tess is that you?" I recognised the voice instantly.

"Mum," I breathed happily.

"How are you coping, living on your own?" she asked. She always was a little too curious for her own good, a bit like me really though I wasn't quite so bad.

"It's actually quite fun, easier than I thought." I answered truthfully. Mum knew I wasn't lying.

"I still can't believe you managed to buy your house straight away, it must have cost a fortune!" she said, curious again I thought.

"I've RENTED it not BOUGHT it!" I told her for the thousandth time. I couldn't believe she still couldn't remember that little fact.

"Sorry to bail on you but I really need to finish cleaning the house." I said solemnly.

"Bye love," she replied unhappily.

"Bye, talk again soon, bye" I hung up before she could say anything else. Mum could talk for hours, and it was sometimes really annoying. Tomorrow was the start of a new year, my first, at high school and I needed to get some rest so I wouldn't be grouchy. I plodded back upstairs and walked slowly into my room. I had moved into the house only a couple of weeks ago and there was still some odd clothes strewn messily around the floor. I picked them up and stuffed them into my drawers. Then I hunted around for a pair of jeans and a t shirt. I hooked the box out from under my bed and picked out one of my jumpers. I pulled out my purple, long sleeved salt rock one. I picked a pair of stripy, neon socks from the top drawer and threw them on the floor in a messy pile. On top of my drawers was a jewellery box and my pink, fingerless gloves that stopped half way up my arm. I threw them on the pile and then went down stairs, hunting about for the school bag I had bought with some spare money. I had also bought a pencil case and a posh 'parker' fountain pen, some cartridges, a pencil and a ruler set thing. I shoved the pencil case into my bag, in a rush now. I put the bag on one of the three chairs around a semi circled table that was pushed up against the wall in the kitchen. I went back upstairs, having finished getting ready for tomorrow and sat in my bed with 'ink heart', one of my favourite books. I read till late into the night, about 1 in fact. I set the alarm and went to sleep.

The alarm didn't wake me up that morning, but instead a loud _crash_ did. I sat bolt upright, scared stiff. Nothing moved down stairs, and when I moved my head I realized the crash had been my fault. I had swept my alarm clock of the table next to my bed in my sleep, but luckily I hadn't broken it. The clock said 6:45, but I knew I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep so I got up and popped my clock back on the table. I didn't need to be in school till 9am, that's when my very first lesson started, but I got dressed anyway. I went over to my pile of clothes and got dressed, rolling up my sleeves but leaving my gloves off. I bounded down the stairs, excited now and put my gloves on top of my bag. I made myself breakfast, cereal, and sat at the table eating it but not really tasting it, I was daydreaming. The next thing I knew the spoon was scraping noisily against the empty bowl and as I put it in my mouth there was nothing on it. I sighed and dragged myself from the table -not quite as happy now- and took my bowl with me. I chucked it, none to gently, into the sink to join the rapidly growing pile of washing up. The only thing I hated about this house, the washing up. I didn't mind the cold and I certainly didn't mind the rain- as I had lived in England before I had moved here- but I had to wash up by hand. It actually wasn't so bad come to think of it; at least it was just me. I looked at the clock, and it said 7:20. I sighed and traipsed up the stairs. I went in to the only bathroom- my room was at the end of the corridor and the bathroom was on the next left from it- and pulled a comb through my short, dark reedy brown hair. My Hair was only just shoulder length at the back and a bit shorter than that at the front. I had a long fringe that fell over one eye and half hid it from view. My hair had a natural wave in it, so it was crazy all the time. I also had light grey eyes and annoyingly long eyelashes that always got stuck in them. I pulled my fringe back with one hand, grabbed a face wipe and cleaned my face slowly, being thorough. I brushed my hair back into place then went back down stairs. The clock practically screamed 7:30 at me; I had another HOUR before I needed to go. I didn't have any makeup on, I didn't have any water proof mascara and I never wore makeup any more anyway, unless I was going somewhere posh. I got so bored sat in the kitchen I got up and washed up last nights and this mornings dishes, leaving them to dry on the draining board. I put my socks on then, my feet were getting cold from the floor and I had half an hour left. I made a drink, but you could buy lunch there so I just stuffed some money into my purse. I hadn't been given any books so my bag was nearly empty, I didn't care. I went upstairs and grabbed my MP3, fully charged the night before, and my coat and ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time. I didn't want to miss the bus on the first day. I put my babycham shoes on, they were grey with flowers on and florescent green laces. Then I put my gloves on, leaving my sleeves rolled up and completely 'forgot' about my coat. (really I just thought I didn't need it, It's my life and I can do what I want.) Anyway I didn't mind the rain, maybe it could tame my hair a bit. I walked down to the end of my drive, one strap of my bag slung over my shoulder. I could see my breath but I was so used to the cold that only my feet resembled popsicles. I heard the clanking of the old yellow bus before I saw it. Someone had repainted it, so it was an even more vibrant colour than before. It was unseasonably cold for September, and I would only need to wait around for the bus until December, as then I would be seventeen and would be able to get a drivers licence. As I got on the bus a torrent of warm air hit me. I said good morning to the bus driver and found an empty seat. The bus was nearly full and every one was talking, trying to get to know the new kids. I had missed a year at the school, oops.

"What's your name?" asked one girl sat across the isle from me. I didn't answer, just looked down and pretended I hadn't heard her. I always accidentally answered people's questions when they weren't asking me. The girl tapped me on the shoulder and asked again.

"Tess, Tess Shilton." I answered, deciding it was better to talk to her.

"I haven't heard of anyone by the name Shilton, are you new?" she asked. She had quite a shrill voice, high pitched. Mine was a bit lower than most peoples anyway. When me and my brother used to argue his voice would get higher. It used to be quite difficult to tell who was saying what.

"I moved here in summer, from Torbay." I answered truthfully. She stared blankly at me, then I remembered she wouldn't know where Torbay was. "In south west England." her face brightened considerably. She was obviously trying to get gossip about everyone new.

"Why forks?" she asked, curious as my mother I thought, annoyed.

"I wanted to live somewhere warm but I'm not great with the sun, as you can probably tell." I said. I had experience with masking my feelings, so although I was annoyed at this too curious girl she didn't notice. She looked at me properly for what I'm guessing was the first time as she was shocked to see how pale I was. She looked at my 'ginger' hair and pale skin, then her eyes lingered on the skin showing between where my gloves ended and my rolled up sleeves began. There was a slight pinkie red tint to the light brown skin on her hands, obviously she was slightly cold even on the warm bus. MY skin was as white as if I had never once been out in the sun and I didn't look cold at all.

"How can you stand it?" she asked, still looking at my exposed skin. She bobbed her head to where she was looking. I had to guess that she meant the cold.

"It's warmer here than you think a lot warmer than in England." I explained. She looked back to me, obviously satisfied with my answer. Either that or she thought she had found out some deep dark secret about me. I decided to take advantage of this talkative girl, I didn't want to admit it but I would never approach someone and start talking to them if they didn't talk too me first, I was to shy. "What's your name then stranger?" I asked lightly. I knew this was exactly what she had wanted me to ask her.

"Jessica," she said holding out her hand. I shook it enthusiastically, but not too hard or with jolting movements. When my fingers- the only part of my hand exposed- touched her skin I noticed her hand WAS cold, very cold in fact. She obviously noticed my hand was warm to, as she looked slightly shocked, never mind. Just then the bus clattered to a stop. I looked round. We were in the car park, outside the school gates. I wondered slowly through the babbling crowds, people stopping me to say "hi" and "what's your name" as I went. Luckily I was quite good at memorizing people's faces, so I learned about ten or twelve different people's names. First lesson was P.E. and this term we were playing netball. We all got given kit at the start of the lesson and then we sat down and the teacher explained the rules to us. The lesson went surprisingly quickly and soon I was stuffing my new P.E. kit in my bag. Next lesson was English, oh joy. I sat next to Jessica, the overly curious girl who had talked to me on the bus. As I had walked into the room she had waved and smiled at me, then patted the seat next to her. I had walked over to her and smiled back, containing my anxiety well.

"Hi! How was your first lesson?" she had asked before I had even got comfy. I was bracing myself for one hundred questions.

"I had P.E. so I just had to sit there." I said pleasantly, hiding the fact I was grimacing inside.

"Cool! I had calculus, it was soOo boring!" she said. She didn't look bored. I fished my pencil case out of my jumble of clothes, determined not to pull any of the P.E. kit out of my bag. I rummaged around and pulled out my drink. I gulped down about a quarter of the bottle, then shoved it roughly back into my bag. I put my bag under my chair and stretched out my legs under the table, shrinking in my chair slightly. I sighed and looked up at Jessica. She was looking at my gloves again.

"You like my gloves? I got them from England. I've had them years and there really warm." I said, trying to embarrass her by showing I had caught her

"Love them!" she said. She didn't even look down, but she did look confused. "How can you just sit there and relax?" she asked frowning.

"Why can't you?" I asked her. She was sat up straight, her hands folded neatly into her lap.

"We ARE in high school now, we need to study hard." she explained, still frowning.

"I find that I can learn just as much sat like this, comfortably, as I can sat looking like I have a piece of wood shoved up my top." I said back. She DID blush then. Her hands were still in her lap but she slouched slightly, probably realizing that I was right. I hadn't noticed, but everyone else had been talking too. I did, however, when everyone suddenly stopped. My eyes drifted to the front in time to see the teacher walk in. she looked around and smiled to her self, then started talking. I wasn't listening hard, just hard enough that I would be able to recall most of the things she said. Mostly I was daydreaming, though what about I will never know. I was only pulled out of my dream when the bell went. I grabbed my bag and put my pencil case in it. I quickly zipped up my bag and walked out of class next to Jess.

"What have you got next?" I asked her interested. She was still upset about the last thing I had said to her, she probably didn't want to admit I was right. She looked at me and smiled, forgiven already, I thought smugly.

"Science, what have you got?"

"Um…" it took me a moment to think. "Calculus," once I realized my face fell. "Ugh, never mind it has to be done." I said, more comforting myself than her.

"Good luck!" she said turning away. When I got to class some people had already got there. I took one of the empty tables on the back row and hoped no-one would have to sit next to me. But by the time the teacher walked in I was sat next to a girl. The way she held her self, bowing her head and back slightly, told me she was just as shy as I was. She had quite long, brown hair. Her fringe was slanted over one eye and was quite long to. We all got given books that we wrote our names on. Her name was Cassie. At the end of class, as I stuffed my book and pencil case in my bag she stood up. She was just a bit taller than me

"I'm Cassie!" she beamed at me, straightening up.

"Hi, im Tess," I said back. I was wrong, she looked so energetic she was actually bobbing up and down. She was hovering at the edge of the table, though I didn't know why. People were beginning to leave but, obviously she didn't care. She smiled at me. As I walked to the cafeteria, she followed. I didn't need to look back to know whether she was following or not, her foot steeps were quite loud, especially compared to mine. I bought some pizza and got some salad, paying for it with the money I had shoved in my bag this morning. I grabbed my drink from my bag and went and sat at a table. Cassie got some salad and a coke then-to my surprise- came and sat with me.

"Do you like cats?" she asked after settling in her seat.

"Yeah?" I answered, frowning. She was asking random questions

"I love them, but im allergic, can't get cat hair in my face else it goes all puffy." I laughed at the way she described it, imagining her head swelling like a balloon. My face looked really funny when I laughed properly, so I wasn't surprised when she burst out laughing too, pointing at me. We laughed for just over five minutes solid, when ever I had almost calmed down I would look at her face and just start again. She kept doing exactly the same thing. At one point I realized if I didn't look at her I wouldn't laugh. That was how I calmed down. When I looked up a couple of people were staring at us. They looked away the moment I caught there eye. Just under a third of the tables were empty, a few had been since I came in, one of the classes must have been held up. I ate my pizza hungrily, glugging down a mouthful of drink after to wash it down. Then I slowly ate my big bowl of salad. We talked right through lunch, about pets, what England was like, hobbies. We were in our own little bubble. So I was confused when the bell went, a little disorientated even.

"What have you got next?" she asked,

"Science," I answered

"I've got science to! You wanna sit next to me?" she looked so hopeful that I couldn't help it. I tried not to smile, but I could tell the corners of my lips were pulling up.

"Go on then." I said and smiled to her. I walked with her to science, she bounded happily along, so it was hard to keep up with her. I didn't know what to say, so I just walked quietly. When we were almost there she suddenly started humming.

"This is going to be fun," she whispered in my ear as we walked into class. There was still an empty table left on the back row, so we sat there. She hummed even after the teacher had come in. I didn't say anything, though I did raise my eyebrows. It was a lecture, so I slouched in my seat and started day dreaming again. What seemed like just a minute later the bell rang.

"So, have you lived here all your life?" I asked Cassie, trying to make conversation.

"Yeah! I love it here!"

"It is warm" I agreed. She was just as hyper now as she had been at lunch. We got up quickly, my last lesson was Spanish. We were both in the same class so I managed to sit with her.

"Do you want some cake?" she whispered to me half way through the lesson.

"Um… ok?" I answered, also whispering. She took a little cake out of her bag, un wrapped it carefully and broke it into little pieces. She gave me a piece under the table. When the teacher turned around to write something on the board we popped pieces of cake in our mouth. It was Coffee cake, my favourite. For the whole lesson we sat there, sneakily eating cake when the teachers back was turned, it was fun. We ate the cake slowly, and finished it just before the lesson finished. We walked together to the car park. Her parents picked her up from school every day, so I said bye and waved to her as the bus left. Jess was sat behind me again

"See you've made a few other friends, then." She said disgustedly as she watched me wave to Cassie. I ground my teeth together, Jessica could be so bitter. She seemed to hear my teeth grind together, and took it as the warning it should have been. She leaned back in her chair and I knew that she wouldn't be talking to me again in a hurry. I put my headphones in and listened to the script. I found it always calmed me down, no matter how bad a mood I was in. I was sat by the window, so I looked out of it, staring at the utter greenness of the surrounding forest. My stop was third, so I was soon strolling happily down my drive. I would only have to survive another month-exactly a month I realised happily as my birthday was on the 3rd and it was the 3rd of September today- of snide comments, until I could learn to drive then I would be free. I unlocked the door and walked in, taking my shoes of straight away so I wouldn't get the floor mucky. I got changed into some clothes I could relax in and put some background music on while I read. I was asleep by 10:30- I had learned that going to bed at 11 wasn't a good idea- and was not woken up by something crashing to the floor.


	3. one weeks notice

2.a weeks notice

There was a low _beep, beep, beep, beep_ from my alarm clock. It was half seven. I got dressed and went downstairs, getting cereal and sitting down and eating it. I got a fresh drink and put it in my bag, then I got a little bag and put my P.E. kit in it. I put everything in my bag, raced up the stairs, I cleaned my teeth and brushed my hair into place. Then I went back down the stairs, zipped up my bag in one fluid movement then put on my gloves, socks and shoes. The clock said 8:20, so I had a few minutes. I grabbed a quick drink and once I had finished it went out the door, walking down my drive to school. On the bus I listened to my music and looked out the window as the trees sped by. It was soothing, watching trunks of green flash by. In P.E. we started netball, and in English I had to sit next to Jessica. We got let out early from P.E. so I tried talking to her.

"did you make any other friends, I mean I saw you with some kids at lunch, what are they like?" it was a feeble attempt at striking up conversation, I know, but I didn't think she would react as badly as she did. She shuffled over to some other poor kids table. Unluckily this got everyone moving and soon I had a new neighbour. She DID look nervous, but after what I had thought about Cassie yesterday I didn't trust my instincts. She looked completely absorbed in her work and I didn't know what to think. I wasn't really very social as it was, and after what had happened with Jess I decided I wouldn't talk to anyone unless they talked to me first. By the end of the lesson I had slowly shuffled to the end of the table, and whoever was next to me had done the same thing. She didn't talk to me so I didn't talk to her. I walked to calculus hoping that Cassie's light hearted approach would rub of on me. I had always hated new schools, but had also been exceptionally good at blending into the background. But only when I had wanted to, other times I would talk to my mates. On the odd lesson where I wasn't with my friends- just people who hated me- I would always be able to sit there and not get called names. I just didn't like company as much as most people, the same goes for my house. On weekends I always used to be sat at home watching movies, reading, listening to music or writing a new story. That was what I liked, not just cause I didn't have any one else to go down town with. I was pulled roughly out of my daydream as someone came up behind me and tugged at my bag. I automatically held onto it tighter and looked up to see who it was. I didn't recognise the face only that they were in my year. Had I seen them in one of my classes? I thought so but it was only my second day so I couldn't be sure.

"your gunna be late!" he said, pulling me along by my bag. I smiled at him, realizing most people were going into the class room I was headed for already.

"are you in my calculus class?" I asked, a little breathless from the tug of war we were having with my bag.

"your Tess right?" he asked, Jess must have got to him.

"yeah, what would you like to know?" I just knew he would want to ask me something.

"your really from England?" he had let go of my bag and came and walked next to me.

"yeah, rainy old England" he was looking at my rolled up sleeves.

"and your not cold, at all?" we had walked through the door and were getting to my table now, so I only had time for a one word answer.

"nope" I said lightly, knowing that that wasn't the real question. Cassie was already there, energetic as ever.

"hi Cassie, haven't deserted you yet!" I said and smiled at her. Her mood really was rubbing of on me.

"yay! Your going to sit next to me today!" she almost screamed with excitement, then flushed red when she saw some people looking at her.

"why wouldn't I be sat with you?" I asked, confused.

"I saw that emily kid talking to you, and that boy I keep forgetting the name of. emily hates me, so I thought you would take her advice and sit with someone else." I realized what she meant instantly.

"emily doesn't like me anymore." I whispered to her. The teacher had just come in. Cassie turned and smiled at me happily, then her face dropped. I presumed it was because she had seen the teacher come in to. All through calculus we kept writing funny notes to each other, but did the work to. It was hard to keep a straight face with some of the things Cassie came up with. By lunch I was finding it hard enough just to not laugh. At lunch I got a pizza and some salad again, and sat at the same table as before. We sat eating in silence for a bit, then suddenly Cassie said

"I, am a god," in a funny way. I had to laugh, but not before I managed to raise my eyebrows and look at her questioningly. "I'm so sorry Tess, but im moving." she said after a while of concentrating on something.

"what? Where?" I asked confused. She had only just started school

"me, mum and dad are moving to England, I complained but they wouldn't change there minds." she said solemnly.

"when are you going?"

"next Tuesday, I thought I would give you a weeks notice, but by the sound of it your going to be eating alone." It was such a shock that it took a minute to unjumble my thoughts.

"looks like I am going to be eating alone from next week then," Cassie looked so unhappy about moving that I had to add on. "Good job I'm used to being alone, I actually quite like not having to keep up conversation, I don't find it easy to talk to strangers." she still looked guilty, just not quite so bad.

"I feel so bad about leaving you here on your own."

"I can fend for myself, lets just make the most of the time we have, yeah?" and we did. We had a laugh in science, but not so much that we distracted everyone. In Spanish we sat there eating chocolate cake and trying not to laugh when miss had her back turned. The rest of the week past in the same sort of way, and suddenly it was Saturday. Me and Cassie were going to port Angeles to go to the cinema and go see a film. I didn't have a clue what we were watching because I had let Cassie choose, though I HAD said no icky, sicky romances. I don't know what we ended up watching, but it was good anyway. We came out and bought a portion of chips to eat between us. Cassie phoned her mum to come and pick us up and we ate the chips while we were waiting for her to come. By that time it was just after lunch so I asked Cassie if she would like to come back to my house and do homework and stuff. I did warn her that my house was a bit messy, but she said she honestly didn't mind. My room was the worst. There were no shelves so the books I had brought with me were in stacks, piled on the floor. My school bag was still down stairs so, after Cassie had made a pit stop at her house to grab her books, I tipped the contents of my bag all over the lounge floor. There was enough room for us both to lye on the floor with our books around us. I connected my mp3 to my speakers and put it on, opening my door and turning It up quite loud so we could here It down stairs. We hadn't got loads of homework, and we had go t to my house by just after 1:00 so by about 2:30 I had finished. It took Cassie a little longer-I was a quick writer- so I did the washing up, put some washing on so I wouldn't go without clothes and put another load on to spin dry. Then I scrubbed down the kitchen surfaces and changed the sheets on my bed. I grabbed 'ink heat' and started reading, I had almost finished it now.

At 4:00 I realized that I couldn't hear Cassie's humming, so I looked up to see that she was no longer in the lounge. There was a note where she had been sitting. Scribbled on the page was the words _find me if you can! _I knew straight away that it was Cassie, she had said she loved hide and seek. First I went into the spare rooms and looked in both of the wardrobes. Then I looked under the three beds. With a sudden burst of inspiration I ran to the airing cupboard and yanked open the door. Cassie was nestled in amongst the spare sheets, her cheeks pink from the heat. I helped her out of her nest but left the door open, it was getting cold in the house by now. It was 4:55 so I decided to make tea for the two of us. I made a tomato sauce with veggie mince and some wraps, we both had two each. Then Cassie rang her mum and asked her to pick Cassie up in about half an hour. I was feeling quite energetic, so I changed the music up stairs, we packed away our books and danced for about quarter of an hour in the lounge. It wasn't really dancing, more like jumping up and down at we were exhausted at the end of the fifteen minutes. We crashed back onto my sofa, and lolled there- breathing heavily- for a bit and giggling.

When we had cooled down enough I turned the music down and there was a _knock ,knock_ from down stairs. I ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time, but Cassie still managed to beat me to the door. She tugged on it quickly and it opened to her mother's surprised expression, her fist still lifted inches from where the door would have been. She composed herself quickly.

"you nearly ready to go?" she asked.

"yeah mom, just a minute." She turned round, went to the lounge and picked up her bag full of books. "by the way, this is sue." she shouted down the hall, obviously to me. I walked to the bottom step and perched there, waiting. Cassie grabbed her shoes from by the front door and came and sat next to me. She pulled on her shoes.

"so, what did you two do today, apart from your homework?" asked sue, trying to fill the silence that was starting to get uncomfortable. She was looking at me so I decided I'd better answer.

"I managed to get some washing done and some dishes washed to. Then we played hide and seek. We also managed to do a bit of dancing, it was really fun!" I said happily. I smiled at her, happy. She smiled back, then looked at Cassie. I looked at her too, Cassie was staring at me wide eyed, looking scared. I was still smiling, but furrowed my eyebrows. "what's up?" I asked. She was looking at my mouth, so I closed it and stopped smiling.

"you have REALLY sharp teeth!" she said, still looking at my mouth as if she could still see them. I realised now that the way I had smiled had shown off my canine teeth, and the place she was sitting made them look sharp and scary. One of the friends at my old school had even once accused me of being a vampire. Haha! I smiled again and laughed.

"you'll be surprised to hear your not the first person who has said that," I said smiling more and raising my eyebrows. She laughed then and I felt the edge of my pointed tooth with the edge of my tongue. "we will talk again on Monday," I hinted, still smiling the smile that showed off my teeth. It was my natural smile, but I didn't often smile like that, I usually got similar shocked reactions.

"ok, see you on Monday," she replied, seeming to get my hint. I stood on the porch as they drove away, waving and smiling at them. When they were gone I sighed deeply and dragged myself inside. I stood in the kitchen for a few minutes, gathering my thoughts and chewing the inside of my mouth with my canines. I went upstairs and put on my music, jack Johnson this time. Him playing guitar and singing calmed me down quickly so I went back down stairs, grabbed my book off the armchair and went back upstairs. In my room was my old pink armchair. I had got it for Christmas when I was thirteen and had had it shipped over especially. Since coming here I hadn't used it yet, so it was still in some of the plastic wrapping it had come in. I ripped off the wrapping quickly, and chucked the plastic in the little bin in my room. I sat down on the chair, resting my head on one of the arms and dangling my feet over the other. It was warming up nicely so I didn't bother getting my quilt from off my bed. I read till I had finished the book and by then it was about 11:00 I had brought with me ink spell and ink death but I couldn't be bothered to read them tonight, so I got dressed slowly, and lay in my bed thinking. At some point I must have dozed off because I was awoken to a loud _crash_ and the sound of some things falling on the floor.

I yawned, sat up in bed and stretched my hands above my head. I looked around to see I had swept the alarm clock onto the floor again. Trying to find out where it had landed I saw that one pile of neatly stacked books had toppled over and that in amongst the books was my alarm clock. I picked it up to find it completely ruined, and beyond repair. I sighed and chucked It roughly into the bin. Then I knelt down and carefully restacked my books, the binds all facing towards me. I went down stairs to find that it was 8:00, I was going to be really tiered later. I took the dry washing out of the dryer and popped some wet stuff from the washing machine in it. I went up stairs and put my clean clothes in my drawers. It was to early to go and get a new alarm clock and some shelves from town so I had some cereal and cleaned all the dishes, I really was bored. I closed the airing cupboard door as it was pretty warm in my house after leaving it open all night. I had absolutely nothing else to do so I got dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and a jumper and went outside. I wasn't really cold, but I shivered involuntary as I drop of rain dripped down my neck. I tilted my head up to the sky and closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of cold, refreshing rain on my face. There was a wet bench by my house, so I walked over to it and sat down, not caring that I was getting my jeans wet. I leaned back and closed my eyes, listening to the birds singing and the sound of water splashing on leaves. Although I had never told anyone that was the real reason I had come to forks, it was so quiet, natural and green everywhere. I must have sat there for quite a while, just listening to water running off leaves and splatting on the ground. Suddenly I could feel some heat radiating next to me. I opened my eyes slowly, feeling too calm to be scared. The top layer of my hair was dripping wet. I had such thick hair that the rain didn't ever soak all the way through to my scalp. I lifted my head up and turned to look at whoever was sat next to me.

"so you are alive then?" asked the stranger, seeing me lifting my head up and look at him. I laughed. He had quite brown skin- a nice colour brown- and really dark brown hair, naturally that colour. His hair was ragged and beautiful. It was windswept but he didn't seem to mind. He had deep blue eyes that were ringed by a deep green around the edge. His eyebrows weren't really thick, though his lips were pretty full.

"I didn't scare you did I?" I asked, still smiling happily. I didn't know who it was, but he seemed friendly enough.

"well you were lying limply on a bench In the rain, normal people don't usually do that." he said. I looked at my hands, seeing they were pale as ever. That was the reason I usually put my gloves on. My hands weren't cold, but they looked an odd colour, even for someone who had ginger hair and lots of freckles. I had subconsciously pushed my sleeves up again.

"so what are you doing then? I didn't realise you weren't normal either." I said raising my eyebrows but still smiling happily.

"ok, you got me." he said, holding up his hands palms towards me. "guilty as charged." he smiled to. I was smiling as I had at Cassie yesterday.

"um…" I said, not wanting to be rude. "I don't mean to be rude or anything but do I actually KNOW you?" I felt really embarrassed for asking but I had to know.

"oh, sorry didn't I say? I'm oliver!" he smiled. I smiled back, but obviously he saw the curiosity burning in my eyes. "I wanted to see who had moved in, looks like a loony whoever she is." I laughed lightly, but realised I hadn't properly introduced myself.

"oh, by the way, my names Tess," I said. "if your as cold as I am you'll probably want to go inside." I said, getting up. "think I need to change my jeans to," I said making a face and turning my back to him. He laughed and got up to. I hadn't locked the door, so I just opened the door. "just give me a minute," I told him, walking up the stairs. He sat down in the kitchen on one of the stairs, so I went upstairs to get changed. putting on my black jeans, I opened the door. oliver was stood there, outside the door so close I actually walked straight into him. He looked just as surprised as I was. "oh! Hello!" I laughed, wondering how long he had been stood there.

"HUh…" was all he could manage. I raised my eyebrows pointedly at him

"why don't you come in then?" I asked, signalling towards my room with my hands. "it's a bit of a mess though, I will warn you." he looked past me into my room, taking in the stacks of books. His eyes stopped at my bin.

"what happened to that?" he asked. "did you throw it at the wall or something?" I looked down at my feet, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"I sort of pushed it off the table while I was asleep." I explained. He laughed. As we walked down the stairs I looked at the clock in the kitchen. It said 9:45. "tell me you can drive?" I asked, looking hopefully at him.

"not yet," he frowned "why?"

"I need to go into town, get some things."

"oh," he lightened up. "its a ten minute walk from here along the path."

"at what pace?" I asked. I was going to get fit really quickly living here

"quite a fast one," he admitted. "I could go with you?"

"deal," I said before he could change his mind. He raised his eyebrows but said nothing. I smiled and grabbed my purse, a bag and my set of keys. I gestured to the front door. "lead the way," I said smiling at him. We wondered through the forest for twenty minutes at a leisurely pace until before we saw another house. We walked into town, going into the supermarket to buy a new alarm clock and a few shelves. I bought them, stuffed everything into a bag for life and then told Oliver I had finished. He was a good person to be with, easy to talk to. He walked back with me all the way to my house.

"would you like to come in?" I asked politely.

"love to," he said grinning at me. I unlocked the door and put the bag down on the chair closest to me. He followed me into the kitchen

"wanna cup of tea?" I asked him, my cheeks were beginning to hurt from smiling to much, but it seemed almost as if they were stuck there.

"no, thanks. I don't really do tea, or coffee before you ask." he said. I didn't either but thought it polite to ask.

"you might have to stick around a bit to help me put up these shelves," I warned him. "so get out while you still can, and don't say I didn't warn you."

"I think I'll take my chances." oliver stayed round all day. He helped me to put up the shelves first, holding them straight for me . When it got to luch time I made us both something to eat. After lunch he helped me put all the books onto the shelves and then we sat on the floor in my room and talked. He asked me usual questions. Where did you come from, why did you move here and a few unusual ones to. At one point he asked why I didn't like my mum. I laughed and punched him on the shoulder lightly.

"what?" he had asked innocently. I was still laughing.

"I just don't like the cold English weather, not my mum to!" I had explained.

"what's English weather like?"

"in winter its cold and rains really hard, in summer its cold and rains but the sun shines slightly." we both laughed at that. Soon the sun was setting. I looked at the new alarm clock I had bought in town. It said 5:30 pm.

"don't you think you should go?" I asked anxiously, not wanting to make his parents worry.

"what's the time?" he asked. He had his back to the clock.

"half five, when do you need to go?" when I said that he jumped up quickly

"hell! Twenty minutes ago!" he shouted. I raised my eyebrows at him. He smiled sheepishly at me.

"where do you live?" I asked

"that way for a bit," he answered pointing the opposite way from town. We went down stairs and I said goodbye to him.

"bye," he said smiling. Then he turned to go, leaving the door open. He didn't look back as he walked into the forest. I was stood, gripping the door with both hands until long after he had vanished into the green wilderness. I made myself dinner, warming up some pasta sauce I had made a couple of nights ago and cooking some pasta. It tasted good, but I only slightly registered that fact. I was daydreaming about oliver, wondering if he would be in school tomorrow. He WAS the same age as me so hopefully we went to the same school. I couldn't believe Cassie was leaving, we had only known each other a week, but she was a good friend and I would miss her loads. All I knew about oliver was that he was my neighbour, we were the same age, he had always lived here and that last week he had been ill so he might be in school this week. I hoped so. I went upstairs and took 'ink spell' off the shelves. But I didn't read it. First I got ready for school, making a fresh drink and checking I had all my books. I read till 11:30, making sure I had all my clothes piled on my armchair and setting my alarm for 7:00_. _

_Beep beep beep beep _I sat up straight, then fumbled about to turn off the alarm. When I finally found the button I stretched and yawned, though I wasn't tiered. I got out of bed and walked over to where my clothes were. I was still half asleep as I got dressed, but when I got down stairs and started to eat my breakfast I finally woke up properly. I finished my breakfast, noting that I was running low on milk, and went upstairs to brush my hair and clean my teeth. When I had finished I got my bag out of my room and went down stairs. I still had twenty minutes but I pulled on my socks anyway. I did it slowly, as if trying not to rip them, then got my shoes. After Ten minutes, I got my MP3 out of my room and plodded down the stairs. Untangling the headphones I walked slowly to the door. By the time I had got to the door the headphones were in my ear. I opened the door, locked it and turned on my music. Evanescence came on quietly, as background music. I turned it up slightly and stopped at where the bus usually stops. I looked up to see it coming slowly down the road. I got onto the warm bus and sat on an empty as far from emily as possible, not that she even bothered m anymore. As I looked up to see who I was sat next to, I was surprised to see it was oliver. I took one of my headphones out of my ears- the one closest to him- and smiled. He smiled back at me.

"hey oliver! Your at school today then?" I asked cheerfully.

"yeah, but im gunna be a loner," he complained, his smile getting smaller

"you can sit with me and Cassie at lunch and if we're in any classes together" he smiled even more than before at that.

"yay!" it turned out that he was in the same calculus class and Spanish class as me and Cassie so he got to sit next to us. Cassie even gave him some pieces of cake so he could eat it to. Cassie was a bit shy with him(yeah I was surprised by that too!), so we only managed to get a few 'yeah' s and a few answers to questions we asked her directly. When ever she spoke to Ollie (he had said we could call him that) she would blush and sometimes even giggled quietly. It was rather funny to watch. Ollie soon found out about the fact she was leaving and said that he was honestly sad to see her go. Instead of going on the bus I had persuaded Ollie to come do the food shopping with me in town. He said that he would love to but that he would have to call and ask his mum first. I agreed that it was a good idea. So after we had hugged Cassie and said our goodbyes for the final time we went into the supermarket. I didn't get too much, I didn't need to anyway as I lived on my own. I remembered to get milk and some pasta- I loved pasta- along with a load of other things. In the end I carried two bags of food and Ollie carried one. We talked while we walked. He asked when my birthday was. Thursday the third of December I had said, then asked his. It was January the twenty second. We got to my house by about 5:30- we were let lose at 3:00- and Ollie even helped me put the shopping away. When he left I once again stared at the empty space where he had vanished into the trees, only to be reminded that I was still standing and staring when my stomach rumbled loudly about what must have been ten minutes later. I had an omelette with yummy free range eggs, mushrooms and cheese. When I had finished It all I did some homework and put the wet clothes onto spin dry. Among them were my gloves, which I figured I would need tomorrow. I packed my bag, trying to get into a familiar pattern to do each night. I really didn't feel like reading again so I put on my laptop for the first time since I had got here. I went through my documents until I found my stories folder then opened it. I clicked on the first one in the list. I read through the last page I had written trying to remember what the story was about. It had been ages since I had opened it. After reading through the same page twice I suddenly realized what it was about. I bit my lip and pushed up my sleeves, trying to figure out what to write. I hadn't figured out what the story was called yet, only the plot and where It was going to end up. Roughly anyway. I lived through the last sentence in my head _I was confused. Her bed? That couldn't be right no-one lived here any more Louise had said so. _then I figured out what to type. I wrote till 11:00 then I stopped, having written quite a lot. I sighed and stretched my fingers, I hadn't typed In a while and needed to practise a bit. I went to sleep that night and dreamed I really was in the story.


	4. someone new and interesting, not

**3. Someone new and interesting, not.**

**The following days went quite slowly and with an annoying repetitive feel to them. Suddenly it was the weekend, though I had been left in some other day, Thursday perhaps. So little happened after Monday it was actually annoying. Ollie had questioned me loads, and I had answered his every question fully, taking care to say the right things. I never felt that comfortable asking people questions and it sounded like Ollie didn't like answering them that much either. By the end of the week I had managed to ask him about six questions, blushing twice and been refused once. I used to love the weekends because I could sit down and relax, could do whatever I wanted to do whenever I wanted. I decided to do what I used to. I read for half an hour, went on the internet, watched the smallville episodes I had missed. There were two so instead of reading for another half an hour I did for an hour, then did some jobs. By then it was half eleven so I made lunch and went to my room. I noticed that my room hadn't been destroyed over the course of the week. I looked at the clock, it was 4:00 so I made tea, I had lasagne this time. I chose it because of how long it took to cook and also because it was my favourite food. I ate tea happily, savouring every mouthful as if it was really precious. I was at a good bit of my book-nearly half the way through- so I read for a bit, when I finally risked a glance at the clock it said 11:55. I went to sleep still thinking about the book, wondering what would happen next.**

**On Sunday I read for most of the day, only stopping when I got a call from the place I was planning on learning to drive, confirming my place and the time my lesson would be. I had arranged it so I would have lessons after school on a Tuesday, driving home each week. I would start the week after my birthday, and I had already done the written exam thing and passed. The second time was just after lunch. **_**knock, knock **_

"**come in!" I had shouted in the direction of the door. **

"**you know that you shouldn't really invite someone in if you don't know who it is first." he shouted back.**

"**do you really think a murderer would knock, Ollie?" I asked sarcastically. **

"**what gave me away?"**

"**your voice, now will you come here? I don't really like shouting conversations to people on my doorstep." I shouted. The door closed quietly and I heard his footsteps. **

"**should I take off my shoes, there a bit wet," he asked not waiting for my answer and taking them off. I had been washing up so I wiped my hands on a cloth and turned to look at him. He was closer than I expected. **

"**hi!" I said brightly, looking at his face. I could tell he was excited, but I wasn't sure why. "am I missing something?" I asked suspiciously.**

"**two words, the cullen's." he didn't say anything else so I guessed I was meant to know what that meant.**

"**um… im sorry but that makes no sense to me, am I meant to know what your talking about?" he made a face**

"**you really are slow. A new family, the cullen's are coming to forks. Actually I think there already here." he was really excited. I raised my eyebrows. I never quite understood what the fascination with new kids was. Ollie told me there was the mother, father and five adopted kids. Two sophomores and three juniors. He didn't know their names, but did know that there dad had got a job at the hospital. After chatting about them for a little while, Ollie said he had to go. He walked the same way as usual but I didn't watch the way he had gone, longing for him to come back. Instead I went up stairs and read some more of my book. **

_**crash! **_**I was once again pulled violently from my dream with the sound of something crashing to the floor. The only difference this time was that it wasn't someTHING that had crashed to the floor. I was on the floor this morning. I felt the start of a headache, so had obviously hit my head on the floor or the table on the way down. I groaned, I would have a nice big bruise on my hip and arm tomorrow. At least I hadn't broken my clock again. I got up. It was 6:45 so I got ready like normal, just not as rushed. I sat at the kitchen table for a couple of minutes, ready with my shoes on and everything just listening to my MP3. I went outside, running to the other side of the road just in time to see the bus coming down the road. I sat next to Ollie- he always saved me a seat now- and I asked him to come to the super market with me again today. Once again he agreed, then asked if I would be doing the shopping every Monday. When I said I would be he laughed and said he would always come with me, even after we learned to drive. I told him that it would be sooner than he thought, and that I would be learning next month. He looked oh TO pleased with my news so I was a bit suspicious. When we got to school I saw the car instantly. It was a new car, so stood out in contrast to the other cars in the car park . It was a silver car, a Volvo, but apart from that I had no idea what it was. I wasn't really into cars, though I knew most of the different badges and how good they were. I DID know that Volvos were pretty expensive. But that's as much as I thought about it. I knew how to mind my own business. Better than most people here by the look of it. There was a crowd of people round the car, even Ollie stared at it a bit. But at least he didn't stare or turn to look at it as we walked to first lesson. Some people were late for class, probably discusing the flash Volvo. In first session everyone was talking about the 'new kids' and this continued into second session as well. It didn't bother me and I soon got so bored of the talk that I shut everyone out. The whole day I managed to avoid anything to do with the popular conversation, up until last session. He was there. I didn't know their names yet, only that there was a boy and a girl in the sophomore's year and two boys and one girl in junior's year. Everyone else had already got seats, Ollie sat one side of me, there was a seat on the other side of me where Cassie had sat. There were no other seats open. I was horrified though I didn't show it. I had been avoiding them all day and now he has to come and sit next to me. But I didn't show it at least. I couldn't stay in that mood for long though. He had light browny golden hair, and eyes slightly lighter that matched perfectly. Under his pale white skin- paler than mine- he had what looked like hard, well developed muscles. They were only noticeable because it was more than the other boys here. His good looks were not why I couldn't stay in that frame of mind but because I couldn't hold a grudge against someone I hadn't met or got to know at all. He looked a bit scared as he sat down next to me, but once he had settled down a bit looked more happy. He slouched in his chair- like I had- and closed his eyes like he might fall to sleep at any minute. **

"**hi, I'm Edward cullen," he said quietly even though miss wasn't in the room yet. He was pleasant enough.**

"**I'm tess," I replied smiling at him though I was sure he couldn't see me. He opened his eyes and smiled back. "you have paler skin than me, that's an achievement!" I said, looking at his pale arm. His sleeves were rolled up and he had his hands resting on the table. He lifted the arm closest to me of the table and put it near my arm as if to compare the difference.**

"**um… I think that the fact that the colour of your skin is so close to mine is more of an achievement." he looked me up and down with a critical eye. Miss was just coming in now so he turned back to the front. I kept just enough focus on what miss was saying and started day dreaming, this time I was on a horse riding through a field of corn with Ollie just behind me. The dream was so real I almost forgot that I was in the classroom. I snapped out of my day dream quickly, to see Edward looking at me curiously, as If he had seen what I had been thinking about. Then the bell went. I packed up my stuff and zipped up my bag. As I turned to wait for Ollie, Edward spoke.**

"**can you ride?" he asked. I heard the curiosity in his voice so I turned to look at him. I remembered how it felt when I used to ride along woodland paths with my friends**

"**you mean horses? Yeah!" I answered happily. **

"**you know, Ollie has five horses?" he asked quietly and then turned and left without another word.**

"**do you have horses?" I asked Ollie on the way to the supermarket. A weird look crossed his face. It looked like a mixture of confusement and curiosity. **

"**yeah?"**

"**why didn't you tell me? We could go riding!" I said excited now**

"**you ride?"**

"**yeah! I LOVE riding, don't you?" mock horror crossed my features. He laughed.**

"**maybe we could go on the weekend or something?" he asked politely**

"**would love to!" I was excited now, wishing the weekend would come quicker. On Saturday every week from that week onward we would go riding. Ollie was a brilliant rider- much better than me- and his horses were agile and fast, brilliant for in the woods. When we rode through the woods it was always in the direction of my house then back to his afterwards. At lunch we would stop at my house and tie the horses on a long rein to a tree trunk in the forest. After lunch- soup or something else warm- we would ride back to his house and put the horses in the field behind his house. That first Saturday was the first time I got to see his house, his mum too. He had already told me he was an only child and that he lived with his mum- his dad had left before he was born- but I never expected what I saw. When you talk about 'single parents' you always think about mess and clutter all over every surface so what I saw made me stop dead in my tracks. Which is something because it takes a lot to startle me. As I walked into the hall behind Ollie I was actually trying not to think that the place would be messy. I failed, miserably. The house was spotless. Ollie had told me to take my shoes off on the porch- which I would in my own house If my shoes were muddy anyway- but the gleam to the furniture I hadn't. the surfaces shined as if they had been waxed just that day- even in the dim light- and the carpets were perfectly white. I stood there- in shock- for a couple of minutes trying to sort out my confused thoughts. I heard a radio on and singing drifting from along the corridor. **

"**hi mum! Were back!" Ollie shouted down the corridor. The singing cut short and I heard a clattering as someone put something down, I guessed it was his mum. The door on the far left of the corridor opened and a women walked out. She was quite short with hair a bit shorter than mine that was dyed a nice shade of deep red. There were also some browns added subtly into her hair. She held her head high, and was a little chubby in a nice cuddly sort of way. She walked down the corridor at a leisurely pace- obviously not in any sort of hurry- and stopped in front of me. She was wearing brown cord jeans and a blue short sleeved top.**

"**nice to meet you, I'm Julie," she said to me. "you must be tess, nice to finally meet you." she shook my hand and flashed her son a triumphant grin. "I see he tidied up for you, he must really like you." she winked and I giggled. HE cleaned the house? **

"**what were you doing before we got here?" I asked, letting the curiosity show in my face and voice. Even though I wasn't really curious about what she was doing she didn't need to know that. **

"**come see," she encouraged. She led the way to the room she had come from, opened the door and let me see by pressing herself against the open door. I gasped but didn't stop this time. Screwed to the four walls were shelves. But not just a few, there were four shelves on every wall going along the whole length of the pale lilac walls. As the shelves got further down they also stuck out a little more. Littering every shelf were pots of hundreds of tiny glass beads and some other pots with string and ribbon, as well as little metal things. In the middle of the room was a circular table, with even more glass beads on. These ones were bigger and had more colours, I realized that she stuck them together to make cool patterns. There was also a miniature blow torch on the table. "welcome to my studio," she told me, snapping me out of my dazed assessment of the room. "do you like it?" she asked. I turned slowly to look at her and blinked a few times. I felt the same blank look on my face and weird stare that I got after watching a movie or TV. if I am tired and that freaked people out on my face. I worked to put an expression on my face. I raised my eye brows.**

"**do I like it?" I asked her incredulously. "I LOVE it!" I was mostly just amazed. She smiled. **

"**this is what I do as a job," she explained. I could only WISH I could do that. **

"**could I have a go?" I REALLY wanted to be able to do that to.**

"**what do you think, Ollie?" that was when I remembered Ollie was there.**

"**yeah! I need to clean up the mess in the kitchen anyway…" with no more explanation he walked back down the corridor. I stared after him, feeling a little bit guilty but not quite enough.**

"**do you WANT a go now?" she asked. And from that moment on, after riding I would make some beads for about and hour. To start with. I managed to burn the first one. I got better quite quickly from then on. Julie kept my little works of art each week. I don't know what she did with them but I hoped it was something good. The weeks sped by after that. I was happy, so was Ollie. He didn't mind that I spent some time with his mum. He actually liked it. He told me I was 'the daughter she never had' and I found her fun to be with. She acted like a kid, it was hilarious to watch. You would see her, stood there making beautiful pieces of delicate jewels and then she would make you giggle. It was almost like she was a slightly older version of Cassie. I was so happy in fact that I didn't notice when the new month started, at first anyway.**

"**surprise!" shouted Julie, Cassie, Sue, my mum and my brother Sam together. I stopped, completely taken off guard by them. I had totally forgot that today was Thursday. I might be happy but the same repetitive thing each day at school was getting old, fast. Even for someone as patient as me. Cassie, Sue, my mum and Sam- my brother- had all come over especially. I smiled, ecstatic that they were here. There was music on, a cake on the table and presents on the floor. The cake was probably all thanks to my mum, she was really good at cooking. We all talked for a bit, then I got told I HAD to open my pressies, which I couldn't wait to do anyway. I opened my mums first. It was- predictably- some new books I had wanted for ages and some c.d.. there was also LOADS of money in my card, mum must have known that I would be running short of money to get food with soon. My brother also got me a book and Cassie and sue got me a joint gift. It was a special alarm clock. One with rubber round so that no matter how many times you dropped it, it always came bouncing back. I laughed with her about that. Ollie and Julie had got me a joint present to. The first thing was the burnt beads stuck on a thick piece of card, and underneath were the words **_**tess' first attempt at making glass beads. **_**The second was a bracelet made with a few of the best beads I had made. I put it on straight away and thanked them both loads. I talked to Cassie a lot that night, asking her about her new house and what she thought of England. At that she made a face and I had laughed, knowing EXACTLY what she thought. My mum said I had picked a perfect place, for me anyway. She also said that she could never, ever live here. Sam complemented the size of my house TV. and stereo, though I think he liked the latter two more than the first. When I questioned him on which he thought was more important he shrugged, but looked at the TV. I had laughed at that. The music was brilliant, I put on one of the cds mum had got me but I had to put it on my MP3 first so I couldn't do it straight away. After the party we had to figure out who was going to sleep where. Cassie and Sue had got an apartment in the hotel in town tomorrow night but for today they had no where. Mum and Sam had no where for both days but that was my fault. I had told them they could stay at my house. Mum and Sam slept in the spare rooms- both had single beds in- but we still had no where for Cassie and Sue. They suggested sleeping on the sofa, but there was only enough room for one so in the end Cassie slept on the double bed with me. She got a sleeping bag out of the airing cupboard while I used my normal quilt. I felt really sorry for her mum who had to sleep on the sofa down stairs, though she did tell us she didn't mind. About five times in fact. I set the silent alarm on my phone and put it on my pillow next to my head. **

**When I woke up I was shocked to find Cassie in my room, then I remembered last night and smiled. I got out of bed completely silent and got dressed in the bathroom, trying hard not to wake anyone up. I ate my breakfast while listening to Sue's gentle snoring drifting from the lounge. I snuck out the house without waking anyone up by accident and was on time, so got on the bus like usual. Ollie looked a bit tired but had saved me a seat so I sat down next to him.**

"**wasn't the party great?" he asked more enthusiastically than I thought he could manage. **

"**yeah, it was! Everyone was still asleep when I left." I said, laughing quietly **

"**so was my mum, we must have worn them out!" he laughed too. We talked about the party right up until when we had to split for first lesson. P.e. didn't seem as boring as it usually was, though that was probably mostly to do with the fact that I was in such a happy mood. In English I sat there smiling and actually listening to the teacher the whole lesson, I even surprised myself with being able to listen the whole lesson. In calculus we wrote each other funny little notes like me and Cassie used to do in science. The rest of the day went in the same sort of way, a flash. Suddenly we were on the bus, then at home. The day really had gone by quickly. **

_**Crash! **_**I was once again ripped from my dream forcefully. I opened my eyes widely at the sound but was not startled to badly. I was getting used to being woken up by a crashing as something fell to the floor. I stretched, yawned and sat upright. Then the door opened sharply.**

"**are you alright?" my mum sounded worried and looked It to. I had forgot to tell her that I sometimes knocked things over in my sleep. **

"**I'M fine," I told her looking at the table- or where it should have been anyway. My table was on the floor, but luckily not broken. I looked at her apologetically. Then I got out of bed and picked up the table. She left when she saw that I was ok. I got dressed and read until Ollie knocked on the door. Cassie was coming to so while we were waiting for her we made a lunch that included birthday cake, sandwiches and crisps. While we made the lunch we talked about which way we were going to ride to. Cassie and Sue got here in a taxi by nine o'clock with there suitcases. We all walked through the forest to Ollie's house slowly, chatting as we went. Most of the time we were laughing, enjoying the last day in each others company for a while. We rode through the forest, going towards a little meadow where we would eat the lunch w had packed. It took two hours to find the meadow and we sat there for quite a while, laughing and eating. The rain held off all day- as if it knew that we didn't WANT it to rain- and at one point the sun actually shone. We lay in the meadow talking and laughing until we actually HAD to get back. We rode back to his house and quickly sorted out the horses, so we could get back into the warmth. When we walked into the house we heard laughing coming from down hall. **

"**hi mum!" Ollie shouted as always and the laughing abruptly cut of. **

"**hi Ollie!" his mum gasped, obviously trying not to laugh. They stumbled out of the room and Julie leaned against the wall. My mum and Sue were just a little bit calmer and were managing to stand up on there own ok. Mum nodded to the three of us, smiling widely. We left them alone and went outside. We walked back to my house, knowing that the 'adults' would want to be left alone. We sat in the lounge, starting from where we had left off telling each other funny things that had happened at school. I was telling them about the cullen's when mum and Sue stumbled through the front door, still laughing. It looked like mum had fell over a couple of times as she had mud on one knee of her jeans and on her hands. She also had mud on the top of her jeans, she had probably wiped of some of the mud on her hands on her jeans, only to find it was too thick to wipe off. Sue told us that they needed to go soon else they would miss their flight. My brother had been in bed when we had left and now stumbled down the stairs with his suitcase. I smiled, he couldn't wait to be home. Mum went upstairs and got her suitcase, already packed. When she came back downstairs she had washed her hands and changed her jeans. Me and Ollie stood on the door step waving as they drove off. When they had drove out of sight I looked at Ollie. He was looking at me in a odd almost gooey way. **

"**have I got something on my face?" I asked curiously. He chuckled a few times then bent down and kissed me softly. I have to admit it was nice, but I still won't watch those icky romances. He took my hand and we went inside the house. I heated up yesterday's tea for both of us and we both sat there- opposite each other- and ate. It wasn't all that gooey looking into each others eyes, more like laughing at each others jokes like we did at lunch in school. After tea Ollie bent down again and kissed me again- harder this time-and went home just as it got dark. I put some music on, sat in my armchair and closed my eyes thinking about the last few days but mostly about Ollie. That night I fell asleep in my armchair listening to music.**

**I woke up at 10:30 the next morning. I hadn't been sleeping well lately so I was in need of a lye in. I got dressed and cleaned the house. At lunch I had the left over party snacks and a piece of cake. It had been a huge chocolate cake so there was still a few pieces left. I would take the rest of the cake in tomorrow for lunch. After eating I did my homework. I wasn't finished before tea so I had to finish later that night. When I had done my homework I read. I was asleep by 11 that night. I got up and ready quickly that morning. I walked up to the bus stop and sat on the low wall, waiting for the bus. I sat for a couple of minutes before it came into view. I got on the bus and smiled as Ollie patted the seat next to him. I sat down and turned to face him. He was closer than I had thought and he caught me off guard when he kissed me. I would NEVER get used to that, ever. I knew that now. We kissed for a minute until the other people on the bus annoyed us to much. I broke off first. **

"**stop it!" I said loudly, not even breathless. I heard someone behind me chuckle and turned to see emily. She smiled. **

"**so, you two going out huh?" I felt like hitting her. She was so annoying! just then we arrived at school. I got of the bus and took Ollie's hand, more for support than anything else. That week went quickly and happily. It was quickly established that we were going out, and the whole school soon knew about it. But we didn't care. On Tuesday when I had my first driving lesson the teacher said that I did 'so well I could do my test in a couple of weeks and pass' I hastily agreed to that and he booked me a test on Tuesday the next week. Then he smiled at me . Tuesday the 13th****, it was only a week! And that week went quickly. I was a good job I had done a few lessons in England. On Tuesday I was nervous all day, but thankfully Ollie scrambled my brain as many times as he could- by kissing me- so I didn't get too stressed about it. Turns out there had been no need to worry. He had told me to drive back to the centre and then asked me to come in with him. He had said I had 'passed with flying colours' then given me my new drivers licence. I was so HAPPY! Ollie had been waiting for me at the centre and since it was only 4:00 we went first to the bank- I had put all my birthday money in to- then to one of the two car dealers In town. I found a perfect little second hand red citron. It was so great, just what I needed so I didn't bother going to the other garage, so I paid in cash- it was quite cheep as well, the brilliance of second hand things. I drove it back to my house with Ollie in the passenger seat. From now on I wouldn't need to get on the bus, and neither would Ollie. So I rang up the school and told them we no longer needed to get on the bus. They congratulated me on passing my driving test, and I thanked them. Ollie stayed round till 10:00 that night, mostly scrambling my brain cells and I drove him home. By the time I got back I needed to go to bed. We could get up a little later and Ollie walked to my house that morning. It was our last week of school before the Christmas holidays. On the way back from school I saw that there was a opening at a hiking shop. I had never been In there but thought I would need some money pretty soon. So I pulled in and talked to the guy called mike from school. He told me I would be perfect for the job, and asked if I could start after the holidays. I said it would be perfect and got back in the car. Ollie was waiting for me there. **

"**what was that about?" he asked suspiciously. I laughed at his expression and kissed him softly before answering him.**

"**I just got a job," I exclaimed proudly. His face went blank with surprise for a second, then he smiled. **

"**cool! When do you start?" I told him that it was after the holidays on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for two hours each day. It was obvious that he was happy we would still be able to go riding each weekend and I was too. **

**Writers noted---from now on I will be posting a chapter a week. At the moment I am half way through chapter 8 and am hoping that if I do this then chapter 9 will be ready after I have finished chapter 8 and so on. This will also mean people wont chase me with pitch forks and burning torches, I hope…**

**You see that green button? Yeah, that's the one. Press it now, go on, I know you want to…**


	5. headaches and boys

4. headaches and boys

On Tuesday the day went back to normal speed. It was like my whole world had been on fast forward and now someone had hit play. In P.e. I was bored, in English I day dreamed, in calculus I managed to finish the work, at lunch I got my brain cells scrambled quite a few times and in science I daydreamed again. In Spanish I walked in, sat next to Ollie and kissed him quickly on the lips. I got into my daydreaming position, then Edward walked into the room. Suddenly the room fell apart and I wasn't listening to the quiet chatter of our Spanish room, instead it felt like I was being washed away in a current of voices, some louder than others. I grabbed Ollie's hand, only half registering his hand in mine. I felt a headache coming on quickly from so many voices. I squeezed his hand hard and scrunched my eyes shut. I tried to block them out as best I could but there were just to many. A few leaked out still, wanting me to hear them

_what's she… _the first was Edward

_are they talking about…_ the teacher. I could tell who was who quite well

_what the?.. _

_Edward!!! _at this I was startled. I focused on this one person _what just happened?! _she demanded. It was the girl, Alice, I realized. I focused on Edward. Suddenly I saw the pictures.

***

"_hello?" she asked. It was me, stood in a wood, lost and confused. "anyone?" I was hopeful this time. "please?" I almost whispered. I droped slowly to the forest floor, as if in slow motion. _

***

The vision slowly faded out and I was looking at the class room, sat in the same place. Then the bell rang. I hurried to my car, with Ollie hurrying along next to me.

_Why is she going so fast? _at that I slowed down to normal pace and tried to block out all the thoughts- as I had realized that's what they were, the thoughts of everyone around me. It didn't work. Instead I focused on Edward's thoughts. For some unknown reason he was thinking exactly what I was. Then he stopped, almost like he was returning to his own thoughts.

_how is she DOING that he? _he growled in his head. By now I was almost at my car. I took my bag off my back and fished my keys out of my jean pocket. I got in the drivers side and settled in my seat. I saw the cullen's car pull away quickly. As it sped down the road the voices suddenly cut short. I breathed a quiet sigh off relief and started the engine. I had a bad headache now. I turned up the quiet music playing on the cd player- it was Jason mraz. I thought only of the twisting corners I drove down. Ollie didn't speak for the whole journey. He ALWAYS knew when there was something wrong and when you wanted to be left alone. I stopped out side his house. He got out with out a complaint but quickly kissed me on the cheek before he got out. I drove to my house but didn't want to go inside. The silence would press uncomfortably on my ears. So instead I got my bag out of the back of the car and put it on the bench. Then I sat down, slumping into a better position on the wet bench. It was raining lightly so I closed my eyes and tilted my head towards the sky, rejoicing as the cold droplets floated onto my face cooling wherever they touched. I once again listened to the birds singing and the wind stir the leaves of trees, as I had when I had first met Oliver. So I was surprised when once again I felt everything shift. There weren't as many voices, and they weren't as loud this time. It was like the further I got from the person, the quieter there thoughts were. I rubbed my damp temples as I felt the headache coming back quickly. There was just to much for me to take in.

"are you ok?" asked someone next to me softly. I had felt them approach, so I wasn't surprised when they spoke. I hadn't said anything because I had thought that maybe they weren't really there, just my imagination. I took my hands away from my face and sighed, then opened my eyes slowly. Edward was sat on the other side of the small bench, looking at me cautiously like I was about to attack him or something.

"just a headache," I said slowly.

"so you sit out here in the rain?" he prompted.

"its calming, the little birds singing, the trees whispering to me as the wind blows." I answered, my quiet voice conjuring up beautiful images. He smiled and I heard what he was thinking, my voice was conjuring up images for him to. My headache got worse, it was like the high pitched hum that only teens could hear and the adults wont let you turn off the speaker that is making the noise. I closed my eyes and sucked in a quick breath. "think I had better get inside," I hissed through my teeth. He got up quietly and I heard my bag rustle. Then his hand was under my arm. He used his hand to guide and steady my as I walked the way he gently nudged me to my house.

"key?" he asked. I fished the set of keys out of my pocket. I dropped them and heard the door unlock. He pressed the keys into my hand gently and I put them back in my pocket. He led me over to the chair in the kitchen and I sat down.

_wonder what's wrong with her? _He thought. I couldn't help listening, I did it by accident. That was a stupid mistake. I rested my back on the chair and pinched the bridge of my nose. "are you ok? Or would you rather I left?" he asked, his voice sounded really anxious. _CAN I leave her here like this? Is that such a good idea? _I winced as it got worse, which I hadn't thought possible. Then everything went black.

"how long has she been out?" asked a beautiful, soft voice. But it sounded like it was submerged in water, either that or I was. I was sat down, but not in the same chair. There was a flurry of activity around me. _her pulse is still steady, I think she will be fine _the same voice thought. I tried to fight, to break the surface of this black river. Suddenly I broke free of its hold. I blinked under a bright light. Anything would have seemed bright compared to that black river, but this was a blinding brightness. "turn the light off, I think she likes the light as much as I do." the voice HAD been real! The light flicked off suddenly and I could see. I man was leaning over me, looking at me curiously. _I wonder why she fainted?_ he thought curiously. I winced as that annoying bussing like headache came back. "are you alright?" he asked, seeing my wince no doubt.

"headache," I told him. My voice didn't shake, it was the same as it always was. He nodded, then passed me a glass of water. "thanks." I drunk the water quickly. It was cold and nice. I looked around me, my eyes were sensitive and so I could see everything even if it was dark.

_can she actually see? _it was Edward. I looked over to where he leaned against the wall.

"I can, thanks" I replied. He frowned, looking confused then realized I could still here his thoughts.

"your going to get another bad headache if you keep doing that," he cautioned.

"I can't help it! First in class and then after school. And I cant turn it off! I keep accidentally hearing things I don't really WANT to hear, its frustrating!" I was getting annoyed now. That didn't help my headache. "maybe I should go home," I said. He nodded. And motioned with his hand to the door. I let him go first then got shakily to my feet. I leaned on the table in front of the for support. He sighed and steadied me with his hand again. I lent on him slightly so I wouldn't fall over, though he didn't seem to mind. he drove in silence as I not to successfully tried to block out the voices. There were only a few now, and his.

_how is she DOING that? _he thought furiously.

"I don't know, it just started in class," I answered truthfully. he frowned, thinking. I tried my very hardest to block It out, building an imaginary brick wall around my mind. But some of his thoughts still leaked through.

…_when I was around… _instead of trying to block out his thoughts I listened to the quite music instead. I closed my eyes and listened to the music. Someone was playing the piano. It was lovely, like being carry away in a current of notes. Piano music had always calmed me down the quickest. The seats in the car were really comfy and the engine was a quiet purring, like that of a cat.

Suddenly I was lying in my bed. I stretched and realized I still had a bad headache. _knock knock. _that was what had woken me up I realized.

"tess? Are you ok? Come and open the door!" it was Ollie. He sounded worried so I quickly got out of bed and hurried down the stairs. I still had the same clothes on I had been wearing yesterday, only someone had been kind enough to take my shoes off. Edward BESSANT, I realized with a start. I must have fallen asleep in his car. I opened the door. Ollie was stood on the door step looking worried. I smiled weakly at him and he gathered me into a bone crushing hug. When he had finished crushing me he looked at me what I was wearing.

"I have still got a headache and yes I fell asleep in my clothes," I told him. He laughed.

"don't worry, I will just walk," he assured me. "hope you feel better soon," then he walked over to the trees and disappeared into the heavy fog. For the whole day I sat there in a daze, trying to figure out what had happened yesterday. _knock, knock. _at first I thought it was Ollie but when I opened the door Edward was stood there.

"hi," I smiled weakly at him. I still had a bad headache.

"just checking to see that your ok, have you never heard of painkillers?" his voice was soft, for which I was grateful. I smiled more at that, almost to my normal smile. Then I winced in pain as the murmuring started up again.

"I must be going mad, can swear I can hear your thoughts." I winced as someone got mad and there thoughts got louder.

_your not mad, just crazy, _Edward comforted with his thoughts. I burst out laughing. That didn't help. I swayed when I managed to straighten up, almost toppling over before Edward caught me.

"I think you had better get to the hospital," he hinted. Just then the voices stopped. I sighed in relief as the voices shut off. My headache immediately stopped.

"I'm ok," I told him, surprised. he smiled then suddenly he grimaced like he had tasted something truly sour.

"see you tomorrow, bye." then he left. He looked rushed too leave. When Ollie came through the still open front door five minutes later. I was still stood in the exact same place, rejoicing that my headache was gone. I smiled at him and dragged myself towards him.

"hey!" I said to him, completely back to normal now. I kissed him quickly and he seemed distracted. Just then he focused on me. "my headaches gone!" I told him happily. He smiled half heartedly.

"that's good, are you going to school tomorrow?" I knew It was a stupid idea but I just didn't want to stay in this empty house for any extra day I could help.

"yeah," I told him softly. I put my hand gently on his cheek. Then he pulled away, stepping back a single step. I looked at him blankly.

"I'm sorry," he choked out. "I can't do this anymore, goodbye Tess." then he sprinted flat out towards the woods. I never thought I would see him again after that ever. That night I cried myself to sleep. I woke up the next day, my eyes dry. I would never get over Ollie completely but I could at least forgive him and on the odd occasion even forget him. When I got in my car I turned the music up and listened hard to it, no thinking about anything else. I was soon at school. It was the last day before Christmas and there was a certain feel of freedom in the air, so strong you could almost taste it. But I wasn't happy. It was a freedom to nothing, freedom to go where ever you wanted to but I had nowhere. I would sped Christmas alone, like every day before and after too. I didn't care anymore. The whole day went very slow, when ever I day dreamed the images I saw were dark and gloomy so I soon gave up. I sat on my own in ever lesson and at lunch to. In Spanish Edward didn't even talk to me. I felt so alone. It was true what people said. You feel most alone when surrounded by a group of people. I drove home slower than usual, now dreading my lonely Christmas. The weekend and the rest of the next week for that matter was slow and boring. I only just registered the fact that it was Christmas eve, or even Christmas for that matter. The only way I realized it WAS Christmas was because of the old movies on TV. I watched them absently, not really seeing. New year was much the same, though I did stay up till 12:30. I was soon at school again, in the same boring monotone as before. I didn't get another headache, neither did I hear anyone else's thoughts again. Ollie never came back to school either, and I didn't want to go to his house for fear of what I might find. Weeks passed and still there was no sign of Ollie so soon I stopped looking up every time the door opened and gave up hope. No-one else tried to make friends with me after what had happened to emily at the start of the year but I didn't care at all. I was to wrapped up in my own world to even notice. Weeks went by and I didn't really notice. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday I would work for a couple of hours and every other night I would watch the TV. blankly. I would talk to mike while we worked- about homework projects and things- but not for very long. I would answer his questions, ask some of my own and also make myself smile all the time but I wasn't very good at making small talk and was nervous around him. I think mike could tell but every week he tried. I got better and realized what he wanted to talk about quicker and quicker. I got the idea that he liked me more and more and in the month I had worked there we were laughing and joking. I got a pay check each week- I had asked for it to be every week not month- and used some of the money to buy food and put the rest in the bank. I was collecting quite a lot even though I had taken almost all of it out to buy my car. Soon I might be able to buy the house I was renting at the moment. It was a really good job I had paid the rent for the whole year. News that a new boy was coming to the school the first Monday of February flew round the school. Then suddenly it WAS February. I might not have been caught up in the moment but I was a bit excited. As I drove to school for another boring day at high school, I felt like something different was about to happen. Maybe it was just the fact that everyone was expecting something different to happen because there was a new boy coming to the school today, or maybe it was something else. As I came out of my daydream I saw an ice blue car parked in the car park. Since there was no other spaces left-I was later than usual- I had to park next to it. I felt ashamed of my own car, with rust in some places and the paint was getting a bit flaky.

"Need to paint that," I muttered to myself as I opened the stiff door and got out. I closed the door, wincing at how loud it sounded in the almost empty car park.

"You know," said a soft voice behind me.

"God!" I squealed, dropping the books I was holding on the damp ground. Bending down I muttered "shoot" under my breath and picked up the books I had dropped. I wiped the wet patches with my sleeve then rolled it back up.

"Anyway ,like I was saying, you know that talking to yourself is the first sign of madness?" he asked in the same hushed but irresistible voice. Finally I turned round to face the boy who had startled me.

"Morning, can I help you?" I asked pleasantly, wondering if this was the new boy, and if that car was his. The only reason I wondered that was because no-one talked to me, apparently I wasn't interesting enough. He had the same paled face as the cullen's, and dark red eyes. I gasped in shock but managed to keep hold of my books this time.

"I've finally met someone else who is paler than me! Apart from the cullen's…" I trailed off, looking at his face. It brightened as I said this. He pushed his sleeve up to his elbow and put his arm next to mine but not quite touching.

"Wow! Your right!" he replied happily. The difference was so miniscule you could hardly notice that there was any. I dropped my arm and looked up at his face. He had the darkest blonde hair I had ever seen, with a hint of red almost as deep as mine underneath and he had an open friendly face. His cheeks bones were high but not very prominent and his face was slightly rounded, the same as most of the boys in sophomore. He looked up at me with the same expression on his face that I did, as if assessing my looks. It was making me feel awkward so I turned away from him- towards the school buildings-and pushed a shaky hand through my hair. It was getting longer now, a couple of inches down my back. As I walked to my first lesson the boy followed, silent as if he were my shadow. As I started to walk faster he called.

"Hey, wait up! What's your name anyway?" I was tempted to walk off, but curiosity won out so I hung back instead.

"Tess Shilton," I answered "what have you got next?" I asked, truly curious.

"P.E." he replied. Although I didn't want to admit it I was secretly pleased we both had the same first session.

"me too!" I said trying to keep my voice from sounding ecstatic and failing miserably. Laughing at the enthusiasm in my voice he walked in front of me and then turned to face me, still walking. Just then someone walking parallel to us and daydreaming walked straight into him. The look of sheer surprise was so funny that I couldn't help but start laughing hysterically. Then he and the girl were tangled up on the ground. Looking at his face was the wrong thing to do, because I just laughed more. The girl got up, dusted herself down and walked away, blushing a deep shade of red. Then he burst out laughing, presumably at me. We were still laughing-only now I was on the floor too- when the head came to see what the problem was. Seeing us both on the wet ground laughing made him furious, especially since lessons had already started.

"GET TO CLASS, BOTH OF YOU!!" he bellowed at the top of his voice to us. Some of the kids sat in the surrounding buildings looked up at the sound of his voice, but hastily looked away when they saw who the culprits were. By then I had managed to calm down and got up. After brushing off my hands on my jeans I leant him my hand, but instead of taking my hand he jumped up. Ignoring the head completely he turned to me.

"by the way, im Bradley!" he said happily. P.e. was fun for the first time in quite a while. We were starting badminton this week so me and Bradley teamed up. I knew people were secretly happy that they wouldn't have to par up with me. Mike usually paired with and seemed happy enough doing it but I knew that secretly he really didn't want to. Bradley was surprisingly good, though he looked bored out of his mind. He could hit it really far- right to the end of the court- and he was agile and fast. He was really fit too, like he went to the gym three times a week or something. I let the side down slightly but Bradley didn't seem to mind. We won three of the four games we played and by the end he was smiling even more. He didn't look breathless in the slightest though, which I was just a bit confused about. We were both in the same English class so Bradley waited for me as I got changed. since there were no spare seats next to me Bradley had to sit next to the girl called Elisha. Their table was two in front and one to the left of mine. I was worried that Bradley would like Elisha more than me and go off with her at the end of the lesson, but before the lesson started he stood at my table and they didn't talk for the whole of the hour. Third lesson was calculus and Bradley was in a different class from me. The lesson went slower than usual and I thought it might never finish but in the end it did. I realized it only seemed to go even slower because I a something to look forward to, somewhere I wanted to be. I got to the cafeteria a couple of minutes late and, after getting some food I looked around to find all the tables reasonably full. I looked again more closely this time to see which table was the most empty and found Bradley waving at me from a table he had all to himself. I blushed, embarrassed. How long had he been waving at me without me noticing? I walked over to him looking down and sat opposite him on the little table. When I had put my tray down on the table and got comfortable I realized that Bradley was sat really close to the cullen's table. I had completely forgot to tell him that the cullen's didn't talk to anyone, not even me. As I watched Bradley shifted his chair so he could talk to whoever was nearest him, it happened to be Alice. Edward looked up from his food to stare at Bradley. He looked startled by something but Bradley hadn't said anything yet. Then he looked at me. He was confused by something, but the second he looked at me I looked down- at my food- so I didn't see anything else.

"hi Alice, how are you?" Bradley asked.

"im great, you must be Bradley, right?" she asked, completely at ease and not at all suspicious of him. It was startling the difference between her and Edward. It was a good job she was the most friendly of the cullen's and the hale's. (jasper hale Is also fostered and has been going out with Alice since they moved here if your wondering.)

"yep!" replied Bradley, turning back to me and picking his piece of pizza to bits.

"are you actually going to eat that?" I asked curiously, looking at the pizza. Alice was still looking between me and Bradley, then looked at Edward as if he could answer every question she had.

"no, im not hungry." he replied. The rest of the day past in a blur and I was soon walking towards the car park and talking to Bradley who was next to me, I don't think he will try walking backwards anytime soon.

"where did you used to live?" I asked, watching the expression on his face. It didn't change, he was still smiling as he had been the whole time I saw him. He looked away for a minute then and I thought I had upset him and he wouldn't answer.

"Canada, in the far north," he replied softly. I had obviously upset him so I decided to drop it. When I looked away from my feet and glanced at his face, for the first time he wasn't smiling. It didn't look right, and there were smile lines imbedded in his cheeks so it just made it worse. Just then I got to my car.

"see you tomorrow" I said, then got in my car and drove to work without a backward glance, It was Monday. I never did ask about his family again, afraid I would upset him. The days past in much the same way. Meeting in the car park and talking on the way to P.e. and sitting together at lunch. Lunch time was difficult for me sometimes. Bradley asked me allsorts of questions, some personal and difficult to answer and some only needing a couple of words. He asked about England, my parents, my house, if I get lonely and other questions such as do I like my parents. Some I blushed at, others I laughed and a few I had to look away, sad. Within a month he knew me almost as well as I knew myself, but he never seemed completely satisfied with my answer, as if he thought I was hiding something from him. But he always smiled. Every morning I wondered whether he would be there, worried he might become bored of me and chose another person to ask questions and hang round with. But the worry was for nothing because each morning I would be greeted with the same breathtaking smile as the day before. Before I knew it a whole month had flew by and still he sat with me. It didn't bother me that the only thing I knew about him was that he came from Canada and I never got suspicious of his ever changing eye colour, I didn't even notice anymore. One warm Friday, however, Bradley wasn't there when I pulled up in the car park. It was just beginning to get warm and this was the first day the sun had shined, but that was only because it was march. I walked to P.e. alone, not bothering to wait for him as he was probably just late. For the whole day I sat alone, waiting for him to walk through the door and apologise to the teacher for being late, and for the whole day he didn't. on Saturday it was another surprisingly warm day and I cleaned the house, having been neglecting my chores and spending the weekends with Bradley instead. By the end of the day I was exhausted and even though I hadn't finished all of my chores I fell asleep instantly. On Sunday I finished the chores I hadn't got round to doing, then started my homework. I lay on the lounge floor with the books spread around me for about 6 hours before I was finished, I even managed to do my project that didn't have to be in for another couple of weeks. I was bored then so I decided to read, and soon lost myself in my book. Looking up disorientated I noticed for the first time since I had sat down on the sofa that I was starving and it was 10:45 pm. I made some pasta and ate it without really tasting it, only just realizing I had scorched my mouth and that it was to hot when I had finished. I jumped up and quickly poured myself some water, drinking it quickly until finally my mouth had cooled down. I breathed a sigh of relief and picked up my dishes, putting them in the sink. I stomped up the stairs and quickly drifted into a dreamless sleep.

The next day I was strangely happy, then realized with shock that it was because I hadn't seen for three days. Since he had got here we hadn't been away from each other for more than a single day and my life suddenly seemed strangely empty without him. It was true, you never do miss what you've never had. It was cold and raining as I went outside, so I pulled my hood up and locked the door. When I turned round to face my car Bradley was stood there. He was half way between me and my car, ten or eleven short strides away and was wearing a long sleeved t-shirt and jeans. His sleeves were pushed up to his elbows and as he stood there he didn't move, didn't shiver, didn't even breath. His eyes were almost completely black today, but that was not what had caught my attention. It was the fact that his eyes were cold, unloving. I approached him cautiously, thinking that maybe he was hurt, or something bad had happened. His smile was gone, it was even worse than when he had first stopped smiling after I had asked him where he used to live. He was mocking me. I stopped two steps away from him and looked anxiously at his face. He smiled at me, flashing his brilliant white teeth that were to sharp and too long to be comforting. There was a loud snarl from somewhere in the trees. I stumbled back a couple of steps and turned to see what had made the noise. Edward jumped out from the cover of the fog and then vanished. There was a scuffling noise beside me and I turned to see Edward pinning Bradley to the floor. There was a lighter growl, softer and more playful and I realized that it had come from Bradley.

"no" growled Edward, so low I could hardly hear. Somehow that only made it more intimidating. "you cant" Edward was gone before his voice hade finished. As I stared suddenly Bradley was stood in the same place as before, smiling as he would at school.

"can I come in?" he was pleasant as always and it made me think that maybe I had been dreaming it.

"um…" was all I could manage, still tongue-tied at what I had just witnessed. Then I gathered my thoughts. "what about school?" I asked, not wanting to be left alone with him if I could help it.

"one day couldn't hurt, besides how many sick days have you taken this year? One?" I didn't know how he knew but he was right.

"oh, ok, come in." I knew I couldn't stop him without arousing suspicion. I unlocked the door and went into the lounge. There was an armchair and a sofa in there. I perched on the edge of the sofa and he flopped into the armchair. His hair was wet with rain but he didn't complain that he was cold. We sat there, watching each other for at least five minutes until I finally gave into the deafening silence. I got up and hung my coat next to the door. When I got back he was sat in exactly the same place, seemingly frozen. I perched once again on the sofa and watched him. He sighed and got up slowly. Then he knelt in front of me and put his hands on my knees. I was surprised by this, because even from that first day he had never touched me, not once. His hands were as cold as if he had been stood outside all day and night, not sat in a warm house for the past five or six minutes, even through my jeans.

"are you warm enough?" I asked, truly concerned.

"I'm fine" he replied, taking one hand off my knee and gently placing it on my cheek. It was like he was made of ice. He bent his head forward, towards my neck and I thought he was going to kiss me. There was a sudden gust of wind and I noticed I was upstairs on my bed, lying down. Then I felt a searing pain and my whole body was on fire. I screamed in agony, then everything went pitch black and the only lingering image was Bradley's worried face as he leaned over me.

**Should have said before.**

**Disclaimer--- yeah I own twilight. I also own harry potter, my own personal slave and a factory that makes nutella just for me!**

**Yeah, I know that was long, and I promise to keep updating regularly. But with my other three stories it's a little hard to keep up. Im also hoping to put up my friends story that is a sort of add on to this one, from someone else's point of view. Though not yet cause it will ruin it! Please check out my other stories and review!!!**


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